A long-standing difficulty with supercomputer simulations of the evolution of galaxies has been getting consistent results among different codes (programs) and with actual observations, so simulated galaxies look like real galaxies. But reproducibility is one of the most elementary principles in scientific methods. An ambitious new multiyear project, called AGORA, to understand and resolve such inconsistencies is described in a flagship paper by Ji-hoon Kim and 45 co-authors.
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SourceUniversity of California High-Performance AstroComputing Center

The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent federal agency that supports fundamental research and education across all fields of science and engineering. In fiscal year (FY) 2016, its budget is $7.5 billion. NSF funds reach all 50 states through grants to nearly 2,000 colleges, universities and other institutions. Each year, NSF receives more than 48,000 competitive proposals for funding and makes about 12,000 new funding awards. NSF also awards about $626 million in professional and service contracts yearly.